How bad are the NFL’s replacement refs?

The NFL's replacement referees have been highly scrutinized throughout the season, but the spotlight reached a new high on Monday Night Football. The final play of the game—a desperation pass to the end zone by the Seahawks—was ruled a touchdown despite appearing to actually be an interception. Here's a review of some of the most controversial calls by replacement officials.
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<b>Monday Night mystery</b><br>A group of players all reached for a last-ditch pass from Russell Wilson on the final play of the Seahawks-Packers game, and Green Bay’s M.D. Jennings appeared to intercept it. However, Seattle’s Golden Tate reached in and got a hand on the ball, and the two fell to the ground. One official signaled touchdown, the other signaled for the clock to stop. After a replay review, the call stood.
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Watch the final play on ESPN "/>

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<b>Monday Night mystery, part 2</b><br>Beyond the fact Seattle’s Golden Tate also appeared to be guilty of pass interference prior to the ball’s arrival, many believe he never had possession.<br><a href="http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=8422506" target="_blank">Watch the final play on ESPN</a>
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<b>The hat tip</b><br>An official in the Cowboys' 16-10 win over the Buccaneers threw a hat that appeared to disrupt the progress of Dallas receiver Kevin Ogletree. Officials throw a hat when a receiver steps out of bounds during a play, though the video did not indicate that Ogletree stepped out of bounds. Cowboys QB Tony Romo targeted Ogletree with a throw into the corner of the end zone, but the receiver had lost his footing—seemingly from stepping on the hat in the end zone.
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AP

<b>Harbaugh's challenge</b><br>Referee Ken Roan admitted erring by allowing San Francisco coach Jim Harbaugh to challenge a play immediately after he called his final timeout. Rules require a team to have a timeout left before challenging, because a failed challenge would cost a timeout. Roan then repeated the mistake several minutes later when, after restoring the 49ers' timeout following a successful challenge, he allowed Harbaugh to challenge after he again called a timeout.
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AP

<b>Titans get 12 free yards</b><br>Officials in the Lions' 44-41 loss to Tennessee mistakenly awarded a 27-yard penalty to the Titans for a helmet-to-helmet hit by the Lions' Stephen Tulloch. He was flagged for the illegal hit on a reception that was overturned on review because the ball hit the ground. Officials didn't replace the ball at the original line of scrimmage, and what should have been a 15-yard penalty became 27.
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REUTERS

<b>Redskins penalized a little extra</b><br>Officials in the Redskins’ 38-31 loss to the Bengals walked off 25 yards of penalties in the closing seconds of the game when they only imposed 20 yards. After Robert Griffin III spiked the ball with 7 seconds left, Fred Davis was called for a false start 5-yard penalty. Washington coach Mike Shanahan said that at least one official indicated a 10-second runoff on the play would end the game, so some Bengals players were walking onto the field thinking the game ended. But since Griffin spiked the ball, no runoff applied. Officials flagged the protesting Redskins for a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, which increased the total penalty yardage to 20. But officials walked off 25 yards, which left the Redskins facing a third-and-50 in the final 7 seconds.

The Boston Globe

<b>Gronk's holding</b>
In the final minute of the Patriots-Cardinals Week 2 matchup, it seemed as if the Patriots had pulled off a comeback when Danny Woodhead sprinted into the end zone on a 30-yard run. But with a yellow flag thrown on the field, it was obvious that a holding penalty was going to negate the touchdown. "I felt like it was a clean block," tight end Rob Gronkowski said. The Patriots missed a last-second field goal attempt and the Cardinals held on for the win.
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Reuters

<b>Monday Night debacle</b><br>The replacement refs were a hot topic of discussion in Monday Night Football's Broncos-Falcons showdown. After a Broncos fumble at the end of the first quarter, a Broncos player came out of the pile of players with the ball, but possession was awarded to the Falcons. This ignited one of many scrums between the two teams, and the announcers brought up the referees losing control of the game and the players several times.
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AP

<b>Ravens lose on Vick call</b>
In a crucial play in the Eagles-Ravens game, quarterback Michael Vick dropped back to pass and threw an incomplete pass while being hit. The call on the field was a fumble, but the replay assistant challenged the ruling and it was reversed. Vick ran in for the game-winning touchdown on the next play.
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<b>Ravens sounds off</b>
After a 24-23 loss to the Eagles, Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco called out the replacement referees, saying they are "affecting the integrity of the game." Teammate Ray Lewis added, "These are calls that the regular refs, if they were here, we know how the calls would be made."
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REUTERS

<b>Call missed in Jets challenge</b> Jets coach Rex Ryan challenged a Steelers running play when he thought there might have been a fumble, but replays showed he actually was down in the backfield. Although it wasn't what Ryan challenged, it is still supposed to be part of the video review. Instead, the call on the field stood.
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<b>Jets get mystery calls their way</b>
The Steelers had at least two flags against them that seemed questionable from the replays. One big play was a pass interference call against Steelers cornerback Ike Taylor, who hardly made contacct with the Jets' receiver. Another questionable flag against the Steelers was an intentional grounding call against Ben Roethlisberger in the third quarter. "I don't know how to answer that without getting in trouble," Roethlisberger said, when asked about his penalty.
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AP

<b>4th timeout</b>
In Week 1, the Lions received an extra timeout against the Rams, which allowed them to preserve enough time on the clock to mount a comeback. It all started when Rams quarterback Sam Bradford slid near the sideline to keep the clock going, opposed to running out of bounds. Instead of this forcing the Lions to use their final timeout, the clock operator stopped the clock even though the referees made no signal for it to stop. "I did report it to the league, and that's all I can do," Rams coach Jeff Fisher said.
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The Boston Globe

<b>Preseason penalty announcement struggles</b>
Referee Don King made multiple attemptts to announce penalties during the second quarter of the Giants-Patriots preseason game. “We have fouls by both teams during the kick,” King announced. “We have illegal shift by the kicking team. After the kick (pause) … we have a 15-yard penalty (motions to Patriots). Chosen to re-kick (points to Giants) … five-yard penalty.” He then interrupted the next play to correct his own announcement. “Correction on the reporting of the foul. Both teams were … both uh … both fouls were on the kicking team. Five-yard penalty.”
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AP

<b>Rams runner ruled down at 1</b>
Steven Jackson thought he had scored a touchdown in the second quarter with his team trailing the Redskins 14-3. Replays showed he had made it to the end zone, but replacement referees ruled him down at the 1-yard line. The Rams got a field goal on the drive, and eventually earned a three-point victory.
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REUTERS

<b>Block in the back overlooked</b>
During Randall Cobb's punt return for a touchdown in Week 1 against the 49ers, Anthony Dixon made an illegal block in the back on a 49ers defender. "Bullcrap," 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh said of the call. The 49ers won the game anyway.
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<b>Saints fan ref gets yanked off assignment</b>
Brian Stropolo was a replacement side judge scheduled to officiate the Saints-Panthers game until a report found that he was a huge Saints fan. The NFL removed Stropolo from duty after finding several photos of him sporting Saints gear on his Facebook profile.
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AP

<b>NFL replacement referees 7th graders</b>
Two days after serving as the head linesman for the Browns-Eagles game, Kevin Akin was spotted refereeing a seventh-grade matchup between Bethany Middle School and Casady in Bethany, Okla.
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AP

<b>NFL replacement referees high school club football</b>
Wayne Bernier, who refereed a Jets-Eagles preseason game, also referees six-on-six high school club football in Texas.
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